A method for establishing a situational awareness of a surface of a body of water is disclosed. In various embodiments, the method includes deploying a plurality of autonomous buoys under or on the surface of the body of water; and scattering the plurality of autonomous buoys to form a mesh communication network.
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2. The method of claim 1, wherein the communication link is a radio frequency link.
3. The method of claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of autonomous buoys includes an accelerometer configured to detect a wave motion.
4. The method of claim 3, wherein each of the plurality of autonomous buoys includes a first sensor configured to detect a current velocity and a current direction.
5. The method of claim 4, wherein each of the plurality of autonomous buoys includes a second sensor configured to detect a water depth or a range to an obstacle.
6. The method of claim 1, further comprising establishing the communication link between the mesh communication network and the flying boat prior to approach of the flying boat toward the plurality of autonomous buoys.
7. The method of claim 6, further comprising performing the water scooping operation after establishing the communication link.
8. The method of claim 7, further comprising maintaining the communication link during the water scooping operation.
9. The method of claim 1, wherein the scattering of the plurality of autonomous buoys comprises activating a propulsor on each of the plurality of autonomous buoys.
10. The method of claim 9, further comprising arranging the plurality of autonomous buoys into closely packed groups for retrieval.
11. The method of claim 10, wherein the arranging the plurality of autonomous buoys into closely packed groups for retrieval comprises activating the propulsor on each of the plurality of autonomous buoys.
12. The method of claim 11, further comprising retrieving the plurality of autonomous buoys via the flying boat.
14. The system of claim 13, further comprising an accelerometer configured to detect a wave motion.
15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a first sensor configured to detect a current velocity and a current direction.
16. The system of claim 15, further comprising a second sensor configured to detect a water depth or a range to an obstacle.
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December 22, 2020
June 20, 2023
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